Every person who has completed a triathlon has a reason for taking up the sport. Usually the attraction is the challenge. You wonder if you can finish a triathlon or be competitive at it. In my case, it had more to do with needing to make a lifestyle change than anything else.

Gwen Jorgensen, the world-class triathlete from Waukesha, closed out the 2014 season as a champion and a benefactor. The 2012 Olympian created a scholarship fund with her husband, cyclist Patrick Lemieux, and distributed 13 grants to young triathletes who needed financial help to pursue their sport.

Wham! I slammed face first into the stern of a kayak. The paddler, part of the swim support crew, had entered the swim zone to attend to another struggling swimmer. Trying to regain my composure and wipe away the blood streaming from my nose, I moved on. That was only the first of several crashes that day.

Hundreds of triathletes chasing Mark Harms would love to know the secret behind his remarkable run of success: six USA Triathlon Age Group National Championships in the past seven years, and one ITU World Age Group title.

Since its creation in Green Bay in 2010, the Wisconsin myTeam Triumph franchise has paired more than 700 men, women and children with disabilities with more than 1,000 volunteer angels. The able-bodied runners, clad in red T-shirts with the “Run like an Angel” motto on the back, provide the propulsion in nearly 30 races a year, from 5K runs to marathons to 100-mile bike rides to triathlons.

Many triathletes spend hundreds of hours training in indoor YMCA pools. But when it comes to racing season, the majority of the swim legs at event take place in inland lakes. Swimming in large bodies of water, like Lake Michigan, can be far different experience.

When the economy crashed, my work as a freelance writer suffered. Instead of getting too depressed about the decreased workload I decided to use the unexpected free time to get in better shape. Possibly stretching that goal a bit, I registered for the 2012 Ironman Wisconsin. Why not, right?